The Excursion
by Inspirational Spark
Summary: Meta Knight finds himself in a city with time to kill.


Meta Knight glided soundlessly through the streets, feeling utterly out of place amongst the bright lights of the city. The Halberd had only landed onplanet half an hour ago, but there had been a skirmish with some of the remains of NightMare Enterprise's demon beast army, and what was supposed to be a short trip to stock up on food and supplies turned into a slightly longer stop that would give Sword Knight and Blade Knight the chance to make some repairs. He hoped they'd find the extra blueprints he'd left for renovations. He was looking forward to trying the, what was it, "cat tree"?

In the meantime, he'd been kicked out of the ship and told to make himself scarce. According to his two apprentices, "with all his pacing, they'd have to repair the grooves his feet made, too."

The Star Warrior huffed, the sound muffled by his mask and cloak. He hadn't been allowed to stay onboard his own ship, or even allowed to watch the repairs from a nearby hill. No, instead, he had been sent to do the crew's _shopping_, like some lackey. "When I get back, I will make them all peel potatoes for a week," the puffball grumbled, eyes narrowed, as his cloak billowed behind him in the wind.

A leaf blew up and landed right on his mask with a wet _thwip_. He swiped it off with an irritated paw.

Although he had finished getting everything on the shopping lists, plus some potatoes for the crew to peel, Meta Knight's internal clock told him that he still had ten minutes before he should be back at the ship. His plan (because he always had a plan, even if it was a terrible one) was to simply walk around and around the square until the time had passed. But as he walked, a sign stood out to him. It was painted red, with blue, green, and yellow letters spelling something in the native language. And beneath it hung another sign, with a silvery-gray circle that looked eerily like his mask and a spiky gold sword that could very well have been Galaxia.

The puffball paused, staring up at the signs and contemplating his options. Would it be undignified to go into a store when he didn't know what the store was selling, just because it had what could possibly be his mask painted on it? Or would it be more undignified to be seen walking around the square more than once?

He made up his mind and stepped forward onto the black rectangle that seemed to open the door. When nothing happened, he grabbed the side of the doorframe and pulled it open wide enough to let himself in.

He hated this planet's fascination with automatic doors with a passion.

Meta Knight glided through the aisles, gazing dispassionately over the rows of toy trains, dolls, and building blocks. At the end of one of the rows, though, he found marks on the floor that were the exact size and shape of his own feet. The Star Warrior followed them, setting his feet carefully over the marks with each step so that he wouldn't trigger a trap.

At the end of the trail of footsteps was a large desk. From a small distance away, Meta Knight could see that it was piled with tons of merchandise, all of which – yes! - prominently featured his mask.

His eyes darted quickly both ways, and, satisfied that no one was watching, he fluttered up to the top of the table and gathered four of everything he saw into the folds of his Dimensional Cape. "These will make excellent holiday gifts for the crew during the coming months," he noted, pleased. "And I am sure we can find a use for these towels and bedsheets."

Meta Knight paused, however, when he found stuffed versions of himself. He remembered only too well the chaos that Dedede had caused with the Dedede Dolls. Were these the same? The Star Warrior cautiously lifted one arm, then the other, and waggled them back and forth until he was satisfied that the dolls didn't copy his movements. "Still, it would not do to give one of these to everyone..." he mused, rubbing what passed for his chin. Eventually, he decided on only getting two of the dolls – one for himself, and one for Kirby, who he was sure would appreciate the thoughtful gift.

He leapt down gracefully from the top of the table and went to pay the clerk. Hopefully, these strange people would take gold.


End file.
